OR: Police arrest 28, zeroing in on bus stops, MAX platforms in 1-day NE Portland operation

Police arrested 28 people last Thursday during a seven-hour, “high-visibility public safety mission” that homed in on train platforms and bus stops along Northeast 122nd Avenue, the Multnomah County Sheriff’s Office said.

Officers from the sheriff’s office, the Portland Police Bureau and the Port of Portland participated in the mission.

Those arrested face various charges, including drug possession, drug delivery and outstanding warrants. One stolen car was recovered, police said.

Officers also came upon a man who “became unresponsive” from an apparent drug overdose, the sheriff’s office said. The officers administered Naloxone, which can reverse the effects of a drug overdose, and called an ambulance.

Police said numerous people approached officers during the mission and “expressed their gratitude for the increased presence of officers.”

TriMet ridership has fallen from pre-pandemic levels in recent years due to changes in commutes and, in part, because people feel they could be in danger on the metro area’s trains and buses.

Only 42% of MAX riders who participated in TriMet’s Attitude & Awareness survey last year said they felt safe when on the train, down more than 30 percentage points from a decade earlier. The feelings of unease were almost as pronounced among bus riders, with 54% saying they felt safe on area buses.

Of those survey respondents who don’t use public transit, some 80% said they’d feel unsafe on the system’s trains and buses.

High-profile violent incidents in recent years include a man in 2024 stabbing to death another train rider in Portland. Earlier this year, a man was sentenced for sexually assaulting an unconscious woman on a train platform at Hillsboro’s transit center.

Police said they’d continue to track crime data for additional public-safety missions targeting buses and trains.

©2025 Advance Local Media LLC.
Visit oregonlive.com.
Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.